Set in 1953, this story revolves around the terrible secret of 161 Radpole Road, which is ruled by the wheelchair-bound Ilse Lamprey. Books by this author have been shortlisted for a number of prizes, and several have been made into films. Her work includes "Life on the Nile".
| ||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Although the eponymous Dr. Gruber emerges early in this novel to eat pork chops and pig's innards with a middle-European countess who pays for his meal out of her dwindling supply of diamonds, his daughter appears much later, to turn a story already dense with innuendo into a tale of intrigue. The girl, who calls herself Vera, comes to live in a cottage presided over by Ilse Lamprey, who loathes the illegal immigrants she is forced to take in as lodgers but daren't expose herself and her secret to a more venturesome clientele. Ilse is attended by Babakov, a half-demented slavey who owes her his life but who willingly relinquishes his duties to Vera. Ilse's food immediately becomes tastier, an eventuality that, considering that the girl resembles a woman long since dead, dulls Ilse's appetite. Vera is never idle: she extorts payment from the men she seduces, commits a murder and at every opportunity climbs up to the attic on a mysterious mission. Eventually, however, she becomes the victim of her own evil. After a complicated, sometimes hilarious, always absorbing series of events, Vera and Dr. Gruber's identities are revealed in the pages of Ilse's confession. This latest offering by the popular British author is alive with wit and erudition and with characters who make you want to believe in their own outrageous quirkiness.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
There are no customer reviews yet.
|
|||
|
Video reviews
|
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
